‘AEW: Dark’ Review (Nov 22nd 2022)
Another week, another episode of AEW: Dark which features 7 matches on the card this week (thankfully; I do love a shorter show)… On with the review!
Match #1: Varsity Athletes (Tony Nese & Josh Woods) def. Rosario Grillo & Dean Alexander
My Thoughts: This was a decent opening match for this week’s show, with Nese and Woods running roughshod over their competition. Still, a dumb name though, even if they did “win” it from the Varsity Blonds.
My Score: 2.5 out of 5
Match #2: Willow Nightingale def. Marina Shafir
My Thoughts: Who would’ve thought that it would take Willow Nightingale to get a great match out of Marina Shafir?! Good to see such a good match and Willow get the win!
My Score: 3 out of 5
Match #3: Wheeler Yuta def. KM
My Thoughts: This was a short and sweet match, with Wheeler Yuta once again coming out of the match looking strong. KM’s size worked in his favour against Yuta but he couldn’t get, in the end, a win over the BCC member.
My Score: 3 out of 5
Match #4: Jake Hager def. Bryce Donovan
My Thoughts: Jake Hager gets a rare singles match and it turns out to be a typical AEW quasi-squash, with Bryce Donovan doing just enough to not look like a total walkover!
My Score: 2 out of 5
Match #5: Tay Melo vs. Skye Blue
My Thoughts: This was not a good match at all. As has been said by many, many, others out there, these two work well against experienced opponents. Putting two [relative] newbies together is typically not going to work out, as proven here.
My Score: 1 out of 5
Match #6: RUSH vs. Leon Ruffin
My Thoughts: This was a great match and a much better use of Ruffin than the squash match he was a part of on Elevation. RUSH looked a million bucks and Ruffin didn’t just roll over and take a beating, making this on of the better matches of the night.
My Score: 3 out of 5
Match #7: The Dark Order (Evil Uno, John Silver & Alex Reynolds) def. Trustbusters (Ari Daivari, Sonny Kiss & Jeeves Kay)
My Thoughts: This was something of a hard watch for me. On the one hand, you’ve got The Dark Order – a team whom I’ve supported since day one. On the other, you’ve got the Trustbusters who are, for me, one of – if not the – worst faction in AEW. Hell of a dichotomy but one that still made for a good main event match!
